Definition

Noun: 1. A container for coins: Specifically, a receptacle designed to hold coins, often as part of a larger device like a vending machine, payphone, or charity collection point. 2. The cash compartment of a coin-operated machine: The part of a device (e.g., a slot machine, laundry machine) where inserted coins are collected and stored.

Usage and Examples

• General Container:

  • The bus driver checked the coin box at the end of his route.
  • Please deposit your donation in the coin box by the entrance.

• Part of a Machine:

  • The technician opened the vending machine to empty the coin box.
  • When the coin box on the arcade game is full, it stops accepting coins.

Advanced Usage

• "To have a deep coin box" (Informal/Figurative): Used to describe a machine or system that generates significant revenue from small, frequent payments.
  • That popular parking meter has a very deep coin box; it needs emptying twice a day.

Variants and Related Words

• Cash box: A general locked box for holding money.
• Money box / Piggy bank: A container, typically for personal savings.
• Hopper: In some machines, the container that holds coins ready to be dispensed as change, distinct from the coin box which collects payment.

Synonyms

• Coin receptacle
• Cash compartment
• Till (in some contexts)

Notes on Meaning

• The term coin box primarily refers to the storage compartment for coins. It is not typically used to describe the slot where coins are inserted (that is usually called a coin slot).
• In British English, a "coin box telephone" was a payphone where coins were placed in a box on the front of the device. The entire phone could be referred to as a coin box.

Noun

1. the part of a slot machine that serves as a receptacle for the coins